Shore is Magical - New Release from Annette Mardis
Thanks
so much for allowing me a guest spot on this blog. I’m so happy to be featured
here.
Have
you ever jokingly tossed out an idea … and it turned out to be just what you
needed? That’s how Shore is Magical,
my latest Gulf Shore novel and my first paranormal, was conceived.
I was
doing an online chat with other authors when the subject turned to paranormal
novels, particularly shape-shifters. Confession: I haven’t read too many of
those books, usually preferring reality (or a reasonable facsimile of it) over
fantasy.
The other
authors were discussing the merits of the animals usually favored in shifter
novels: tigers and other big cats, bears and wolves, primarily.
“How
about a dolphin shifter?” I kiddingly suggested in full smart-aleck mode.
Dolphins are one of my favorite animals and have been since I was a little girl
who listed Flipper at the top of her
must-see TV list.
Surprisingly—to
me anyway—the other chat participants quickly and enthusiastically chorused
their approval of dolphin shifters. So I thought, why not?
The
challenge was fitting a paranormal story into a contemporary romance series
that’s firmly rooted in real life. I spent more than thirty years working as a
newspaper reporter and editor, pursuing a fair presentation of the facts as
both sides saw them. Making things up doesn’t come as easily to me as to other
authors.
I do a
lot of research to ensure that my Gulf Shore novels stay within the realm of
possibility. And I volunteer at a marine animal hospital, so I’ve seen
firsthand how such operations conduct themselves.
So how
do I justify a heroine whose very existence defies belief?
By
making the details of her story as conceivable as possible. And by letting the
other characters express their skepticism and at times outright rejection of
the idea that a person can assume an animal shape, and then change back.
Despite
her otherworldly ability and a lifestyle shrouded in secrecy, Marina Seaward,
the leading lady of Shore is Magical,
is not that different from other women. She squabbles with her sisters and
takes family obligations seriously, but chafes at the strings that bind her to their
restrictive traditions. Seeking true love, she’s beaten down by a jealous and
controlling man but fights to preserve her identity and independence.
Marina
isn’t looking for a savior or a prince charming. And that’s a good thing,
because Kenshin Hamasaki is neither. He’s a good man but a flawed one, and he
hasn’t fully recovered from the tragedies that nearly sucked him down a dark
hole of despair.
Kenshin’s
wounded heart and soul urges him to play it safe, but he’s inexplicably drawn
to the mysterious stranger who risks everything in an effort to fit into his
world in pursuit of her happily ever after.
Lurking
in the background, however, is a dark presence from Marina’s past, who
threatens to end this unlikely pairing before she and Kenshin can fully explore
whether they’re destined to be together.
Find out
whether Marina and Kenshin’s relationship ends in romance or ruin by snaring
your digital copy of Shore is Magical,
Gulf Shore book 4, available now from all major e-book retailers and from liquidsilverpublishing.com.
Excerpt
Here’s
a snippet from one of my favorite scenes in the book, when Kenshin first
encounters Marina in very enticing human form. This scene takes place in the
marine animal hospital at Gulf Shore Aquarium, where Kenshin works. He thinks
he’s helping to rehabilitate a rescued dolphin, but he gets the surprise of his
life one night.
Looking up, Kenshin almost dropped his
phone. He stared, eyes wide, mouth open, as a lithe form emerged from the pool,
water cascading down her body. Where had she come from and, more importantly,
why was she naked? Then he glanced behind her and received his second shock.
The rescued dolphin was—gone. Impossible.
He gave his cheek a light smack to make sure he hadn’t succumbed to exhaustion
and passed out. That was entirely possible, given he hadn’t slept more than two
hours at a stretch since leaving Erica’s bed.
If this was a dream, it was incredibly
realistic. Off the charts sexy, too.
The woman sauntering toward him was
hotter than an egg yolk on Florida asphalt in August. Her brown hair framed a
pair of turquoise eyes that shimmered like the sea. Her rosebud nipples all but
begged for his touch, and he imagined himself at home between her long, supple
legs, which were as toned as the rest of her.
The corners of her lips tipped up as if
she’d read his mind. Kenshin’s gaze darted around the rehab unit, looking for
backup if he needed it. But Kelsey had gone home early for a change, Flipper
probably was loading up on caffeine and carbs, and Sitara was in her office
catching up on paperwork.
Kenshin’s carnal fantasies dissolved amid
concerns about a massive security breach.
“Who are you, and why are you here?” he
demanded.
“You know who I am.” The woman’s voice
was as smooth as spiced rum sliding over ice cubes. “You just don’t want to
admit it.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Your friends brought me here from the
beach, jostling me around in that canvas thing. What do you call it?”
“Are you talking about the sling?”
“It felt like they dragged me across a
rocky sea bottom. Very bad for the delicate skin.” She pouted and pointed to a
chafe mark on her elbow. “Get something softer, for Poseidon’s sake.”
“This is...insane. Why aren’t you wearing
clothes?”
She shrugged. “I didn’t bring any.”
Cocking her head, she studied him for a moment before her expression turned
playful. “Don’t you like me as I am? I thought the males of your species
enjoyed seeing females without garments.”
What an odd way to say that guys lust after naked women. “You’re beautiful, and I think you know that, but it’s beside the
point.”
“Is it?”
She’d come close enough for Kenshin to
stroke a hand down all that lush, bare flesh, and he almost did so to make sure
she was real. Common sense kicked in before he acted on the impulse. Besides
being a stranger, she was, well, strange.
“Listen, lady, I don’t know what your
game is but—”
“Game? There is no game. Your people
rescued me, and now I’m your responsibility. Isn’t that how this works?”
Kenshin glanced around again, convinced
that any minute Flipper or someone would leap out and scream, “Gotcha!” This
had to be a prank. Stuff like this didn’t happen otherwise, at least not to
him. But after that dolphin encounter at the reef, anything seemed possible.
Kenshin felt her warm breath on his face.
It smelled...fishy? When he wrinkled his nose, she clapped her hand over her
mouth. Now
she was self-conscious? He looked into her eyes, an inviting shade matched only
by a secluded tropical lagoon.
“What’s your name?”
“Marina.”
“Marina what?”
“Just Marina.”
Buy
links
Amazon: http://amzn.to/2gP4jiw
And
now a word about the Gulf Shore series
My contemporary romance series is set in the fictional west-central
Florida beach town of Gulf Shore, where you’ll taste salt on your skin and feel
sugary white sand between your toes, the warm sun on your shoulders, and a sea
breeze ruffling your hair.
You’ll meet swoon-worthy alpha males who aren’t embarrassed to cuddle a rescued baby dolphin in their muscular arms, and accomplished women looking for an equal partner who thinks that smart is sexy.
You’ll get up close and personal with sea life, join the “snipe and gripe” club for girls’ nights out, and fall in love with a talking parrot who acts like a little boy in a bird suit.
You’ll go behind-the-scenes at the local aquarium and out to the beach to rescue marine animals in distress and to cheer others as they return to the wild.
You’ll meet swoon-worthy alpha males who aren’t embarrassed to cuddle a rescued baby dolphin in their muscular arms, and accomplished women looking for an equal partner who thinks that smart is sexy.
You’ll get up close and personal with sea life, join the “snipe and gripe” club for girls’ nights out, and fall in love with a talking parrot who acts like a little boy in a bird suit.
You’ll go behind-the-scenes at the local aquarium and out to the beach to rescue marine animals in distress and to cheer others as they return to the wild.
And
once you visit Gulf Shore, you just may find yourself wishing you could stay.
Connect
with Annette
Author
bio
As a girl, Annette dreamed of being an astronaut, but she
stank at science and math and became motion sick riding the bus home from
school. So she went with her second choice—newspaper journalist—and stuck
with it for more than three decades. After years of ignoring well-meaning
people who said, “You should write a book,” she finally did. And then she wrote
a few more. When she’s not working, Annette usually has her nose
in someone else’s novel or her gaze glued to sports on TV. She
has three totally spoiled pets, enjoys being the designated sightseer on
her husband’s Harley, and volunteers at Clearwater Marine Aquarium, home of diva
dolphins Winter and Hope from the Dolphin Tale films.
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